The Price
by Anne Packrat
Summary: Nabiki finds out just how expensive some things are...


Name: Anne Packrat  
E-mail: annepackrat@hotmail.com  
  
Ranma 1/2 created by Rumiko Takahashi and copyrighted by  
a bunch of companies like Viz Video and Kitty Films. Eat  
at Joe's.  
  
Note: I don't like calling this a dark fic, but it is   
somewhat depressing, okay?  
  
A-ko & B-ko's Demolition Company Presents:  
  
Introspections - The Price  
  
-...- = thoughts of a character  
  
Nabiki got up and softly tiptoed toward the kitchen  
in order to get a midnight snack. She noticed light coming  
from under her little sister's room. Nabiki sighed. -She's  
probably crying again. Not that I blame her...- She shook  
her head. -It's been nearly a month since he died, yet it  
still feels like it just happened.- The glow from under the  
door illuminated the duck-shaped nameplate. Engraved on it   
was the name of her little sister, Akane.  
  
Suddenly Nabiki stopped dead in her tracks. She'd   
heard a sound come from Akane's room, a sound that made her  
blood run cold. -That sounded like... no... it couldn't  
be...- She put her ear up against the door. Dimly, she  
heard soft crying, and what sounded like metal on leather.  
-Oh, God! That is!- It sounded like a knife being drawn!  
  
Nabiki threw open the door. "Akane! What the hell  
are you doing?!" she yelled. She stopped in the doorway   
when the image before her confirmed her worst fears. Akane   
sat at her desk, a knife poised above her heart. Her face   
was red with tears, and a discarded sake bottle lay on the   
desk. -Oh, God, she's drunk!- Nabiki thought, -Why now all   
of a sudden?-  
  
The older girl rushed to her sister's side and   
grabbed the knife. Nabiki looked it over carefully then   
put the knife aside. Akane broke down and clutched at her   
sister. Nabiki looked down at her in alarm. -Crud! I'm   
no good at being comforting.- "Um, maybe I should go get   
Kasumi..." In response, Akane clutched tighter. -Um, okay   
now what do I do?-  
  
Nabiki sank to her knees with Akane following.   
The stink of alcohol on her sister's breath made Nabiki   
dizzy. -Jeez, she must have drank a couple bottles! I   
hope it wasn't expensive sake...- She squelched that line   
of thought. -I shouldn't worry about that at a time like   
this! My sister was ready to kill herself! It must be  
about Ranma's death, but why now...?-  
  
"Akane?" Nabiki asked gently. Akane looked up at   
her through tear-streaked eyes. "What's wrong? Is it   
Ranma?" A strangled cry answered her. Nabiki held her   
sister tightly and looked around the room. Her eyes fell   
on the wall calendar. The date was circled in red marker.  
-Why does that date seem so familiar? Is it an aniversary  
of some kind? What happened today?- Nabiki searched her   
memory, and then sighed. -It was three years ago today,   
that we first met Ranma...- Nabiki pulled her sister   
closer. -No wonder she's upset.- After a few minutes   
Akane's sobs lessened. "Akane?" Nabiki said again, "Do   
you want to talk?"  
  
Akane nodded, and pulled away. She leaned back   
and hugged her knees to her chest. "He's gone, he's   
really gone..." she muttered softly.   
  
Nabiki frowned. "Look, Akane, it's been a month   
now. You have to get over it." Akane shook her head   
violently and began to cry again. Nabiki sighed. Her   
sister could be very stubborn, especially when it came to   
Ranma. "I'm sure that where ever he is now, he's happy.  
He was good person, (if a bit of a jerk) and he loved you."  
Akane broke into new tears. Nabiki bit her lip. -I give   
up! Blackmail, corporate takeovers, loansharking, that   
stuff's easy, but a troubled sister is to hard for me to   
handle!-  
  
Nabiki took a deep breath and rallied her wits.  
"Akane, Ranma, he...." Akane interrupted her.  
  
"I never got to tell him how I felt," she said   
softly, "I was always too stubborn." She cried harder,  
and began to shake.  
  
Nabiki went over to her sister and hugged her   
again. "Oh, Akane, he knew you loved him. He always   
knew it in his heart." -God, I sound like Kasumi!-   
Akane looked up at her sister, "Really?"  
  
Nabiki nodded. "He sacrificed himself to save   
you. It was his choice. Do you think he'd have   
distracted the demon if he wasn't willing to pay the   
price?"  
  
Akane glanced at her sister skeptically. "Trust   
me, sis," Nabiki said, smiling, "I'm the one that   
knows all about prices and money, right?"  
  
Slowly Akane nodded and sat up. Nabiki's smile  
widened and she patted Akane on the shoulder. "Maybe you  
should get some sleep," Nabiki said as she noticed her  
sister yawning, "But promise me that if you feel like this  
again you'll come talk to me or Kasumi, okay?"  
  
"I promise," Akane said hoarsely. She got into   
bed. Nabiki stayed until she was sure her sister was   
asleep. Then she quietly slipped out of the room, taking   
the bottle and knife with her. When she reached the   
hallway, she leaned against the wall and took a deep   
breath. "Whew, that was close," she muttered to herself.  
She lifted the sake bottle and read the label. -Hmmm...  
It is the cheap kind. It's still strong stuff though.-   
She grinned mirthlessly. -Akane's going to have one hell   
of a hangover in the morning.-  
  
After returning the bottle to the liquor cabinet,  
Nabiki paused in the hallway. She examined the knife  
closely. -Hmm... This looks expensive. Maybe I could  
sell it....- She twisted the weapon around. The dim   
moonlight fell on a few drops of blood that were the   
blade. Nabiki looked the weapon over carefully and  
dropped then it into a trashcan. -No,- she thought -Some  
things aren't worth the price.-  
  
#########################################################  
  
Okay I'm going to talk to you here without any of  
the Ranma cast intervening. I have a feeling that I'm  
going to get a lot of mail about my portrayal of Nabiki  
in this fic. Let me just state that this is *my*  
interpretation of what I've seen and read. I feel there's  
much more to Nabiki than just greed, and I think she truly  
does love her sisters, even if she doesn't express it that  
much. This holds true for Akane as well, and for any  
characters that I write about.  
  
Second I just want to comment briefly on the  
Introspections series in general. Anyone who read  
Ukyou's Introspections story (Rest in Peace, Ranchan)  
may have noticed that Ramma was dead in both of them.  
This is by no means going be normal for this series. The  
Introspections series itself is just a loose collection  
of stories with each story focusing on one character and  
perhaps revealing a different side of that character. The  
fact is that if Ranma died it would affect everyone in the  
series greatly. This is a great tool for me to use to  
explore various character's emotions. Again this will not  
occur in every Introspections story In Akane's for example  
Ranma is (unfortunately for Akane) alive and well. In case  
you're wondering, Akane's story is the next one coming.  
  
Generic Author's Notes - Thanks to Rumiko Takahashi  
for creating such wonderful characters. Thanks to Mike and  
Todd for introducing me to Ranma and anime. Thanks to the   
other Knights of the Anime 'Round (Sirs Ryoga, Ranma,   
Fireball the 13th, Sanjiyan, Reaper, and Collin) Thanks to   
my friends who just want to be mentioned in one of my   
fanfics: Robin, Nicole, Josh, Josh Sal., Jason, Kath, Jake,   
Brian, Ross, Mark Jasmen, and um... I think that's everyone.   
And thanks to you for reading.  
  
Send comments and whatnot to annepackrat@hotmail.com. My  
fanfics are available at my homepage of   
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/8094 .   
  
-Anne "Lady Akane" Packrat 3/1/97  
(annepackrat@hotmail.com)   
  
  



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